U.S. Death Rate Hits Record Low

March 16, 2011 -- U.S. adults are living longer than ever before and fewer infants are dying, according to data released today by the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS).

“Deaths: Preliminary Data for 2009,” is based on a review of nearly all death certificates reported to NCHS in 2009 from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories. Statistics were compared to data from the previous year.

The new report offers encouraging news: The U.S. death rate for 2009 hit a record low, and significantly fewer people died that year from 10 of the top 15 leading causes of death.

Specific findings from the 2009 preliminary data:

The age-adjusted death rate in the U.S. continued to fall for the 10th consecutive year. An "age-adjusted" death rate takes into consideration the changes in your risk of death as you grow older.

The age-adjusted death rate for 2009 dropped 2.3% from the previous year.

Overall life expectancy rose slightly from 78 years in 2008 to 78.2 years in 2009.

Life expectancy for white Americans slightly increased by 0.2 years.

Life expectancy for African-Americans did not change from the previous year.

The gap in life expectancy between whites and African-Americans slightly increased to 4.3 years in 2009, up 0.2% from 2008.

Leading Causes of Death

Deaths from 10 of the top 15 leading causes of death in 2009 significantly declined. The 15 leading causes of death in 2009 and the decreases in associated death rates were reported as follows: